What Would Have Happened? Part V: Helga Sleepwalks
by Em Pataki
Summary: What would have happened if Arnold didn't believe Helga's "Taking a walk" on his fire escape excuse?
1. Chapter 1

What Would Have Happened? Part V: Helga Sleepwalks

Arnold was asleep in his room when he began to hear voices in his head…

_Oh Arnold can't you see?_

_Despite the fact I may call you names_

_May say that I hate you_

_May…._

CRASH!

The startled boy then sat up as he went to find out where the noise was coming from. After opening his window, he saw his two classmates, Helga and Phoebe, standing in their pajamas.

"What's going on? I heard a crash." Arnold informed them.

Helga's eyes widened with hope as she asked "Wait a minute! A crash? You mean, that's ALL you heard?"

What relief! No matter how awkward it may have seemed she was standing on his fire escape in her pre-school like pajamas, the thought of him hearing the words that had left her lips would have been ten times more humiliating.

"Yeah, a crash. Anyway, what are you guys doing?" Arnold wondered. Why would they be at his place in the middle of the night (especially if she claimed to dislike him so much)?

As long as Helga felt her most intimate guarded secret was protected, she didn't care how pathetic her excuses were. "What's it look like football head? We're taking a walk! It's a free country, we can walk wherever we want."

After watching Helga yank her friend away, Arnold laid back down, thinking about the light headed dream which was occurring before he heard the crash. It was weird enough seeing Helga outside his window; was he actually dreaming about her having feelings for him?

If so, what did that say about the way he felt? Was he, out of nowhere, developing feelings for a girl who shoved him out of the way in the halls, cut in the lunch line, and sprayed him at the fountain every day?

Dreams were nearly impossible to interpret. Most people claimed them to just be compilations of what they experienced during the day. Even if he had seen Helga at school, in no way did he recall either of them showing any type of affection whatsoever towards one another.

_Walk_

"Side effects. Warning: Product may cause nauseousness, irritability, and in some cases severe sleep walking!"

After seeing the solution to her problem was not only discovered, but easily fixable, she knew she would be sleeping well that night. Like all other problems, Helga knew she could trust Phoebe to keep her mouth shut about the entire ordeal. That didn't mean the situation hadn't left someone else's mind however.

_Arnold's Room_

Arnold laid there wide awake, wondering why Helga always tolerated him enough to hang out with him if she hated him as much as she claimed to. Now here she was, walking on his fire escape, as if she was stalking him. This wasn't going to be easy to toss over his shoulder without questioning a few things first.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: What's This On The Floor?

_Arnold's Kitchen_

"Oh bury my not...on the lone prairie!" Pooie sang, while placing the pancakes in front of her grandson.

As Arnold stared at his plate, Phil mumbled at his wife "I'll bury you some place further than that."

The elderly man then looked to see his grandson poking at his helping of pancakes, as if something was on his mind. "Hey! What's eatin' ya short man? Certainly not those pancakes hehe." Phil laughed to himself.

Arnold then lifted his head and replied "I just had a weird dream last night…"

"It's the vicious man-eating tiger returning to finish the helpings! Where's my gun (fly swatter) Kimba?!"

Phil gave a hopeless look as he pointed over his shoulder to his wife and asked "Weirder than her?"

Disregarding the remark, Arnold began to explain "Well, in my head I was hearing voices that sounded like Helga…"

"Ooohhh! You're cranky little friend with the big pink bow and the one eyebrow! Ho boy, this ought a be good!" Phil said excitedly, while scooting closer to the table.

"Yeah, well anyway, half way through it, a crash woke me up?"

Phil began to scratch his head, as he lifted an eyebrow and asked "Crash? What kind of crash? Party crash? Car crash?"

"No grandpa. I woke up and saw Helga and Phoebe standing on my fire escape. She said she was just taking a walk…"

Phil stopped him right there to say "And you believed her? Fire escapes are for racing down, not walking up to enjoy the view of something...unless you're suicidal"

"Grandpa…"

"Oh, I'm just messing with you short man. So, what's got you all shook up about this?"

"Well, I don't know if those voices in my head were something I heard her saying, or something I was dreaming about before I actually woke up?" Arnold sighed.

"Well, DO you like her? We Shortman do tend to fall for the independent type...that is until they lose their marbles." Phil said, once again pointing to his wife.

Arnold stood from the table to head for school and replied "I don't know. Even if she does, based on what you told me about grandma, I don't think that'll make her confess in front of everyone. See you grandpa."

"Have a good day short man." Phil waved before looking back at Pookie swatting her tiger fly, almost wishing he could join his grandson.

_Walk_

Helga was marching down the street happier than ever with her best friend. Once again, she had dodged a bullet, no matter how embarrassing then excuse may have been.

Phoebe was tempted to say how delighted she was that they had discovered the source of her friend's problem, until she remembered Helga promising never to bring it up again.

She and Helga then had a rather quiet walk. They spent the night together, what news did they have to share? That is, until they were preparing to turn a corner...THUMP!

Helga fell to the ground after bumping into Arnold, but this time, he did not fall with her. Arnold stood, looking down at Helga, doing his best not to blush about what had happened the previous night. Helga then shook her head and screamed "Watch where you're going football head! Come on Pheebs!"

Gerald (who was standing nearby) watched the incident and said "At least it was just her who fell this time."

He then noticed his friend's rosey cheeks, as Arnold continued to watch Helga head for the school, and asked "What are you staring at man?"

Arnold shook his head after realize the daze he had fallen into and said "Huh? Oh sorry Gerald. Let's get going."

_P.S. 118_

_Hallway_

Helga looked to her best friend who was heading for class and said "I'll meet you there Pheebs. I need some books from my locker."

Although Phoebe believed her, what Helga really wanted, was a moment alone with her thoughts. Why was Arnold blushing at her? Did he have something to tell her, or was he just embarrassed by his clumsiness?

Helga looked around as she pulled out her locket from her shirt and began to pour out her feelings. She felt there wasn't anything to worry about with class being so close to starting.

_Oh Arnold! What have I done? Lying day after day about my feelings, only to fill that magnificent oblong shaped head of yours with mind boggling thoughts. If only I could find the strength to admit to you the reasons behind my stalking. If only I…_

Helga then dropped her shoulders and swung her fist back after hearing _her _stalker listening in on her feelings...yet again. The only good that ever came out of it was Helga being snapped out of her fantasy land.

As she headed for the classroom, Arnold wasn't far behind. While Helga had been lucky enough for him to miss her lovely speech, Arnold noticed a bag of empty pork rinds falling towards the floor after Helga slammed her locker.

_Classroom_

Arnold was the last to arrive in class. After taking his seat in front of Helga (with the empty bag of pork rinds he did a good job of hiding), he read the warning label.

When the blonde boy read sleepwalking to be a side effect, that explained a few things. It didn't explain whether he was dreaming about her before seeing her, or if she was the one reciting those sweet things about him. As Phil had said, his family tended to go for the independent type, and Helga made it clear she needed nothing from no one (thanks to her neglecting family).

As Arnold sat pondering this, he heard Mr. Simmons ask "What is it Harold?"

The husky boy glared at the teacher while asking in an upset tone "How come Arnold gets to eat in class and we don't?!"

"What are you talking about Harold?"

Harold then pointed to the empty bag of pork rinds, Arnold then realized was causing a distraction.

"No one should be eating. Arnold, I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to put that away." Mr. Simmons insisted.

_Oh brother what an idiot!_

Helga thought to herself, until she noticed what was being put away.

The nervous girl looked at her secret love putting away the bag of pork rinds as she thought to herself…

_If he reads the warning label, he'll know what I was doing there! Criminy!_

Arnold had decided to forget about it for awhile, while Helga spent the rest of class sweating, wondering how she could come up with a plan to either get the bag, or convince Arnold the side effect had nothing to do with him.

_Hallway_

Lunch finally came, and Helga dragged Phoebe out of her seat, quicker than she ever had before.

"Whoa! Is everything alright Helga?" Phoebe asked, while tilting her glasses.

"He knows Pheebs!" Helga grabbed her friend by the sweater in desperation.

"I'm afraid I don't understand." Phoebe replied, as her friend wasn't being too clear.

Helga quivered as she kept an eye out for Arnold and said "He has the bag of pork rinds I left in my locker the other day! He's going to know my mind led me to him!" Helga gasped.

Doing her best to keep her friend calm, Phoebe patted Helga on the back and said "I'm sure the circumstances aren't as dire as they appear to be. Even when people sleep walk, it's not always because of a hidden subconscious burden."

"What's that in English?" Helga asked anxiously.

"It means people don't always sleep walk because something or someone is on their mind. Just because he saw you, doesn't mean he'll automatically accuse you of liking him." Phoebe explained, in the hopes of making her friend feel better.

Helga sighed, not knowing which way this would go, as she said to her friend "Thanks Pheebs."

Helga was hesitant about entering the cafeteria. If they did, would Arnold as to speak with her, explain everything to the guys, or suspect the worst she could possibly imagine?


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: My Body Is Trying to Tell Me Something

_Cafeteria_

Gerald was sitting at the table, enjoying his sandwich until he noticed his best friend staring at the empty bag of pork rinds. "Man would you quit staring at that thing and eat already?!"

Arnold wasn't sure why, but seeing it on the floor in front of Helga's locker, after having that dream, made him think there must be some sort of connection.

"Alright! Pork Rinds!" the boys heard Harold yell from behind.

Gerald calmly yet bluntly replied "Hate to disappoint you Bubba, but the bag's empty."

"Aww gee…." Harold moaned, while walking towards another table. Arnold thought about the conversation he had with Phil earlier that morning. It was hard to tell if he liked Helga when she was always messing with him.

"Mm,mm,mmm! That boy needs help." Gerald shook his head, before turning back to see Arnold still hadn't taken his eyes off the bag.

"Alright man, what's on your mind? We don't keep secrets from each other." Gerald put down his sandwich and said in a firm tone.

Listening in on the conversation from behind a trash can was Helga. After seeing the bag fall in front of her locker, reading the side effects, and seeing her at night, could he be putting it all together?

The blonde girl gulped as she carefully scooted behind the can, just close enough to hear Arnold's response.

"I'm starting to wonder if I like Helga."

While Arnold said this easily, milk squirted out of Gerald's nose. After catching his breath, Gerald asked "Arnold, what did you just say?"

While Helga tried not to swoon, she listened to Arnold explain the situation to Gerald, and wonder what he could do about it?

"Do you think I should say something to her Gerald?" Arnold asked hopefully.

"Well that depends...are you looking for a date with her or ol' betsy?"

Arnold rolled his eyes as he continued to listen to his friend say "Look man, sleepwalking Is just something crazy people do in their sleep when they can't get something off their mind."

Thinking about this made Arnold wonder if Helga's subconscious was trying to tell him something she would never be able to. What if Helga was on his mind frequently? If only there was a way to find out how he felt about her.

_A Few Hours Later_

Arnold was walking home, still not having set own that empty bag of junk food. After watching the animals race out of the boarding house, Phil called Arnold into the kitchen "That you short man?"

Arnold sighed while entering the room and said "Yeah it's me.'

Phil gave a perplexed look and asked "What the matter? Your cranky friend climbing up the side of someone else's house? Hehe."

HE-YAW! Pookie said, as she chopped the melon for dinner.

Arnold then asked "Grandpa, how do you know if you have feelings for someone?"

Phil turned back to look at wife and said "If you're willing to put up with that type of behavior, I'd say you got all kinds of mixed feelings."

Arnold placed the bag in front of Phil, as Phil began to chuckle and said "Well, this will be an easy one to solve"

Arnold lifted an eyebrow as Phil asked "Are you trying to walk to her?"

The blonde boy's eyes then lit up as he had a risky plan he had suddenly devised. "No, but I'll be right back. I just need something from the store.

_The Corner Store_

Mrs. Johanson was finishing up her shift when she called to her manager "I'm heading out for the night."

Just as she said this, she saw Arnold in front of her.

"Oh hey Arnold. How have you been?"

Arnold rubbed his neck and replied "Pretty good. I just need to check this out if you wouldn't mind staying open another minutes?

_Sorry about the short chapters. Been busy lately, and these drowsy meds aren't helping me._

Mrs. Johanson happily turned the register as Arnold approached her with an unusual item..


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Let Me Try Some

_Helga's House_

Although Helga was a bit jumpy about Arnold putting the pieces together of WHY she was outside his bedroom door that night, hearing him say the things he did at lunch was filling her with excitement in a new way…

_Oh Arnold my love! After the years of torment I've felt from this secret love I've had for worshiping you, I finally have some clarity. A chance that perhaps, my lunatic behavior has opened your eyes, and made you consider…_

"Helga!"

Helga then rolled her eyes and slammed the book shut, as she yelled "What?!"

Miriam at times showed herself to be a concerned parent when she said "You didn't come down for dinner. Is everything alright?"

Helga didn't know why she bothered to ask when it was a complete toss up if they'd remember her name or not.

"Yes Miriam." the poetic girl moaned as she took that as her que to change into her pajamas, and get under the covers.

_Arnold's Room_

There the blonde boy sat on his bed, staring at the item he had purchased. If he went downstairs it would just stir up another conversation, similar to the one he'd already had with Phil. This time, with the entire boarding house's opinion on the matter. Nothing good ever came of that. Arnold couldn't recall one time they all agreed on something without causing a dramatic scene to go along with it.

This meant missing dinner however. Arnold knew what the chances of the risks he was taking were after already reading the side effects. He was just so hungry though. Plus, there was something else on his mind…

_20 Minutes Ago_

"I don't think I've ever seen you purchase these before Arnold?" Mrs. Johanson pointed out.

Arnold began to blush as he said "Yeah...let me ask you something. Do you get a lot of complaints about the side-effects. Mainly sleepwalking."

Mrs. Johanson was just the cashier. Most complaints were told to be taken to the manager (even if a cashier WAS addressed about an item).

The concerned mother stared at her son's friend and replied, "Not that I know of Arnold. Why do you ask?"

Arnold did his best not to blush, considering he wasn't the pessimistic type. He was however honest, so he went ahead and said "The warning label says it may cause sleep walking. I just didn't want that to happen to me."

The cashier smiled and replied "Don't worry. The people who have that problem are usually already stressed about something. You seem more like the calm type to me, which is what everyone loves about you."

_End Of Flashback_

_Arnold's Room_

While Mrs. Johanson was right about Arnold normally not having a nervous attitude (that being the reason people always came to him for advice when their 'fun' plans backfired), that didn't change the fact that he was hungry. If he was going to miss dinner, he might as well eat the snack he bought after taking Mrs. Johansons's advice.

Arnold was still on his mind as he was eating them; the first time he'd gone to bed with something that could risk bringing out his emotional thoughts. He'd had nightmares about things going wrong in his life before, but nothing bad enough to actually make him leave him room.

Once he finished the bag as quickly as he did, his stomach felt for enough for him to lay down. The stressed boy layed with his eyes closed, wondering still if Helga came to his place because she really felt something for him, or if it was just a crazy act caused by the pork rinds.

Mrs. Johanson said people normally sleep walk when they're stressed. What did she have to be stressed about that would lead her over so his place?

_Helga's Kitchen_

Later that night, after everyone in her family was sleeping, Helga was going through the fridge. It wasn't exactly easy falling to sleep on an empty stomach. It was worth staying away from her family, when she knew Arnold had finally noticed her however.

Suddenly, she heard a knock on the door.

"Criminy. Who could that be?" hy di

Helga then opened the door to see her beloved standing on her porch. She rubbed her eyes to see if it was just some sort of crazy dream. Even when she was sleep walking to his house, it was only because she couldn't get him off her mind. What could have caused him to come to her?

Helga then quietly stepped out onto the front porch, and listened to Arnold go on about the two of them…

_Oh Helga. Why didn't you tell me how you felt? Wid you treat me so badly? Why…_

Helga then smacked him, as Arnold looked around and asked "What's going on? How did I end up here?"

Helga crossed her arms and snapped, "How the heck should I know? You're the one taking a walk a 3 in the morning!"

Just as Helga was heading inside, Arnold replied "You mean like you did?"

The nervous girl's eyes then widened as she turned and said "What's your point?"

Arnold stood from the porch and said "Helga, the past few days have made me wonder what my feelings for you really are...and what yours are for me."

Helga began yanking at her collar as she replied "Uhhh feelings. What kind of feelings?"

Arnold took her hand in his and added "Look, we both act cool around one another in front of everyone, but that's no reason to hide our feelings from each, just so this can keep happening...besides, my pets almost killed me on the way out the door."

Helga rolled her eyes at his pathetic excuse and replied "I guess that's one benefit I have for being neglected."

"You don't have to be, now that we know how the other one feels. Besides, you don't seem to have a problem expressing yourself to Harold now that we're older." Arnold laughed laughed, while thinking back to their first day of pre-school.

Helga grunted and said "Pink boy doesn't know what's in store for him if he ever makes fun of me like that again!"

"That why worry about anyone's opinion? You don't seem to now." Arnold had to point out.

Helga sighed at the point being made and replied "Alright football head, I'll loosen up. Besides, now I can enjoy those pork rinds again now that nothing is stressing me out."

"Whatever you say Helga."

_**THE END**_

_**THANKS FOR READING**_

_**PLEASE REVIEW!**_


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